(16)South Koreans yesterday proved divided on the issue of whether to grant special amnesty for jailed former Presidents Chun Doo Hwan and Roh Tae-woo. The discrepancy was greatest between citizens of Kwangju, where many died in a bloody crackdown in 1980, and natives of the ex-Presidents' home districts.

(17)Kwangju citizens, especially those who lost family members in the May 1980 crackdown, reacted bitterly to reports that the ruling New Korea Party is considering asking President Kim Young-sam to pardon the two former Presidents. ``Discussion of a pardon will be possible only after they truly repent their past crimes,'' said a spokesman for an association of families of the victims of the military suppression engineered by Chun and his associates.

(18)The association warned that releasing the former Presidents in disregard of victims' families opinions would invite a full-scale protest. But most residents of Taegu and surrounding North Kyongsang Province, the birthplace of the former Presidents, called for their early release for the sake of national harmony. ``The two Presidents have paid enough of a price for misdeeds they committed previously,'' said Lee Song-wu, a 47-year-old resident in Taegu, adding that it is time to release them.

(19)Most other respondents in North Kyongsang Province, Chun and Roh's political stronghold, called for an early pardon for both former Presidents in the spirit of ``grand unity.'' Both Chun and Roh are now serving jail terms of life imprisonment and 17 years respectively after being convicted on mutiny, treason and corruption charges. Currently, ruling and opposition politicians are actively discussing the release of the two former heads of state prior to Chusok holiday, or the Korean Thanksgiving, which starts Sept. 15.

(20)Many observers say the proposal to release Chun and Roh, which was made in virtual unison by the ruling and opposition parties, is connected to the upcoming presidential election. ``It's nothing more than a politically calculated gesture to woo votes from a certain province in the election,'' said Ha Sung- chang of the Citizens Coalition for Economic Justice.

(21)The civic activist strongly denounced the political parties for pushing ahead with a special pardon he says is intended to secure votes from Kyongsang Province, Chun and Roh's hometowns. Other civic groups also condemned what they called the ``hasty and politically motivated'' discussion on the release of the two former Presidents, insisting that the proposal be withdrawn.

(22)They said contemplation of the special pardon for Chun and Roh goes directly against public sentiment and that a referendum would be necessary to decide the issue. (JKW) ``The issue is what the people should decide on, not what a certain power group can do on a political basis,'' said Kwon Yong- kil, head of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. Meanwhile, the prosecution said it will continue to recover the fines, the amount of which Chun and Roh had illegally amassed while in office, regardless of the possible amnesty.

(23)The Supreme Court sentenced Chun and Roh to 225 billion won and 262.8 billion won in fines respectively. The prosecution have taken 18.8 billion won from Chun and 41 billion won from Roh. Prosecutors said they have sped up measures to confiscate other properties of the former Presidents for government coffers, adding that searches are still underway.